Rangers almost made it 2-0 last night. But I will take 1-1
heading back to MSG tomorrow. Although home ice does not seem to mean much to the Rangers.
Having said that, I think Montreal has exposed two serious flaws in New York's game and would have had a good chance of winning even if they went back to NYC down 2-0:
1. The Rangers are awful in front of their own net, and get pushed around even when they outnumber the opposition. I thought they'd be able to overcome this because I didn't think Montreal had enough forwards who could play a gritty style, but after last night's game I'm not so sure about that anymore.
2. Lundqvist has been one of the best goalies in the NHL for a long time, but I suspect even I could score a goal or two against him if I had some good linemates to set me up. He goes down so quickly on every play that I would fire every shot within 6-8 inches of the crossbar. Pittsburgh exposed this badly last year against the Rangers.
17 seconds I’m crying. But I have to agree with the Devil’s fan that the Rangers are soft in front of their own net. Somebody on the Rangers has to kick Gallagher’s ass. He’s too good to let hang out in front of the net. Even a Devil could score against Henrik after someone crashes into him and breaks his stick.